ai4bharat/Pralekha huggingface dataset:
Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution
BIS Mumbai Branch Office –II organizes a Manak Manthan
Mumbai Branch Office –II of Bureau of Indian Standard  organized a Manak Manthan i.e. discussion on the newly published Standard IS 17875:2022 Stainless Steel Seamless Pipes and Tubes for General Services on 18.11.2022 at BIS, Western Regional Laboratory, Mumbai. BIS invited all the interested stakeholders for participation and sharing their valuable feedback on the newly published Indian Standard IS 17875:2022 in hybrid mode. The event was attended by 15 participants across the section of stakeholders, including Seamless Pipes Manufacturers, testing laboratories and end users.
The Programme was inaugurated by Smt Nishat S. Haque, Deputy Director General West. In her address she emphasized the need of Manak Manthan and requested all participants to give their inputs for further improvement of Indian Standard. In the opening remarks, Sh. Sanjay Vij, Head of BIS Mumbai Branch Office-II, the audience was informed about various BIS activities and brief about the newly published Standard IS 17875:2022.
Shri Ashish Wakle, Deputy Director, BIS presented the details on Standard and invited participants to give their inputs. He explained the technical specifications of 17875:2022 in detail to the participants. All the participants took active participation in the Manak Manthan i.e. discussion on the standard and shared their valuable feedbacks about it. The inputs given by the participants will be shared with Technical Department for incorporating suitably in the Indian Standard.
The programme concluded with vote of thanks was proposed by Sh. Pushpendra Mishra, Standards Promotion officer.
Source: BIS
Ministry of Finance
G20 Domestic Side Events on Cyber Security by Reserve Bank of India at Bengaluru on February 20, 2023
In the build-up to the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors  meeting and the G20 Finance and Central Banks Deputies  meeting, two domestic events related to Cyber Security were organised by RBI at Bengaluru on February 20, 2023. The two events were:
Event 1: Cyber Security – Challenges and Strategies 
Event 2: Cyber Security - The Present-Day Need 
Event 1 with participation of around 175 officials of various Regulators, banks, NBFCs and State Government officials had a keynote address followed by two Panel discussions. These covered issues relating to cyber security challenges faced by banks and capital market players and strategies to mitigate them.
Event 2 with participation of around 250 participants from RBI, members of public, police officials and college students had a session from a banker on ‘Next Gen Banking’, followed by a session on ‘Cyber Frauds in Digital Banking – Do’s and Don’ts’
by RBI officials. These sessions covered the future changes foreseen in the banking industry, especially on the digital front, and created awareness about prevention of cyber frauds.
Ministry of Civil Aviation
AAI has embarked upon a CAPEX plan for development/ upgradation/ modernization of various airports
100%FDI permitted in scheduled Air Transport Service/Domestic Scheduled Passenger Airline
Ministry of Civil Aviation, with a view to promote the growth of Indian Aviation sector released the National Civil Aviation Policy  2016 on 15.06.2016. The aim of the Government is to provide an ecosystem for the harmonised growth of various aviation sub-sectors, i.e Airlines, Airports, Cargo, Maintenance Repairs and Overhaul services , General Aviation, Aerospace Manufacturing, Skill Development, etc. Expansion and development of infrastructure facilities at the airports is a continuous process and is undertaken on the operational requirements for safety of aircraft operation and demand from airlines, depending upon availability of land and viability, as well as other facilities with reference to intended aircraft operations. AAI has embarked upon a CAPEX plan for development/upgradation/ modernization of various airports in the country to meet the requirement of Air traffic which includes new Greenfield airports, expansion/ modification of existing terminal, new terminals, expansion/strengthening of existing runways, aprons, Air Navigation Services  works like control tower, technical block, etc. As per the FDI Policy, 100% FDI is permitted in scheduled Air Transport Service/Domestic Scheduled Passenger Airline  subject to sectoral and other conditions mentioned therein.
This information was given by the Minister of State in the Ministry Of Civil Aviation  V. K.Singh Retd) in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today.
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
India crosses 20 Crore Cumulative COVID-19 Vaccination Coverage
India achieved this milestone in 130 days since the start of COVID-19 Vaccination Drive
After the USA, India is the 2nd country to achieve this mark
42 percent population above 60 years have received at least 1st dose of the COVID19 vaccine
India achieved a significant milestone in its ongoing COVID-19 vaccination drive today. On 130th day of the drive, the cumulative COVID Vaccination Coverage crossed the 20 crore mark , as per data available at 07:00 AM today.
India’s COVID-19 Vaccination drive, the world’s largest vaccination drive so far, was launched by the Hon’ble Prime Minister on 16th January 2021.
India is the second country after the USA to achieve this coverage in just 130 days. The USA took 124 days to reach the 20 crore mark.
Additionally, as per the data available on Our World In Data and multiple news articles, other leading countries in COVID-19 vaccination drive include the UK which has reached 5.1 crore mark in 168 days, Brazil that reached 5.9 crore mark in 128 days, and Germany which reached 4.5 crore mark in 149 days.
As per the latest available data with the Union Health Ministry, over 34 percent population above 45 years has received at least 1st dose of COVID-19 vaccine in India till date. Similarly, over 42 percent of 60+ years of population in India has received at least 1st dose of COVID-19 vaccine.
As of date, India is using three vaccines against COVID-19 in its immunization drive; these include two made in India vaccines - Serum Institute of India’s Covishield and Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin. The Russian Sputnik V is the third vaccine to get approval from the Drug Controller General of India  for Emergency Use Authorisation and is being used in few private hospitals which are expected to be increased over the coming days.
In Phase I of the vaccination drive, started 130 days ago on 16th January, the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for Covid-19  prioritized Health Care Workers, and Front Line Workers . Phase II of the vaccination drive started from 1st March 202, focused on protecting the most vulnerable age groups. These prioritized age-groups included persons above 60 years of age and persons above 45 years with associated specified co-morbidities. This was further relaxed to all people above 45 years of age on 1st April 2021. In Phase III, ‘Liberalised Pricing and Accelerated National COVID-19 Vaccination Strategy’ was adopted on 1st May 2021. Under this strategy, everyone above 18 years of age are eligible for COVID-19 vaccination.
Ministry of External Affairs
Cabinet approves opening of Indian Mission in Lithuania
The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has accorded approval to the opening of a new Indian Mission in Lithuania in 2022.
Opening of Indian Mission in Lithuania will help expand India’s diplomatic footprint, deepen political relations and strategic cooperation, enable growth of bilateral trade, investment and economic engagements, facilitate stronger people-to-people contacts, allow for more sustained political outreach in multilateral fora and help garner support for India’s foreign policy objectives. Indian Mission in Lithuania will also better assist the Indian community and protect their interests.
The decision to open a new Indian Mission in Lithuania is a forward-looking step in pursuit of our national priority of growth and development or ‘Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas’. Enhancement of India’s diplomatic presence will, inter-alia, provide market access for Indian companies and bolster Indian exports of goods and services. This would have a direct impact in augmenting domestic production and employment in line with our goal of a self-reliant India or ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’.
Prime Minister's Office
PM celebrates Silver medal by Ajay Kumar Saroj in Men's 1500m Finals at Asian Games 2022
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has congratulated Ajay Kumar Saroj on winning the Silver medal in Men's 1500m Finals at Asian Games 2022 in Hangzhou.
The Prime Minister posted on X:
“Applauding a stellar performance!
Glad that Ajay Kumar Saroj has won the Silver Medal in Men's 1500m Finals at the Asian Games.
His commitment to excellence has etched a glorious chapter in the Indian athletics.”
Prime Minister's Office
Virtual Bilateral Summit between India and Sri Lanka
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and Prime Minister H.E. Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa of Sri Lanka will hold a Virtual Bilateral Summit on 26 September 2020.
The Virtual Bilateral Summit will give an opportunity to the two leaders to comprehensively review the broad framework of the bilateral relationship soon after the Parliamentary elections in Sri Lanka and in the context of the time-tested friendly ties between the two countries.
Responding to a tweet by Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, Mahinda Rajapaksa, Shri Narendra Modi said that he is looking “forward to jointly review the bilateral relationship comprehensively”.
He said, “We must explore ways to further enhance our cooperation in the post-COVID era.”
SH/KP
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Prime Minister's Office
PM celebrates Bronze Medal by Seema Punia in Women’s Discus Throw event at Asian Games 2022
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has congratulated Seema Punia on winning the Bronze medal in Women’s Discus Throw event at Asian Games 2022 in Hangzhou.
The Prime Minister posted on X:
“A remarkable Bronze Medal for Seema Punia. A great performance by her in the Discus Throw event. Her dedication and hard work have made the nation proud once again.”
Ministry of Defence
India – Kazakhstan Defence Cooperation: Webinar and Expo held
A webinar between India and Kazakhstan was held on 15/10/2020. The Theme of webinar was “Make In India For The World, India – Kazakhstan Defence Cooperation: Webinar and Expo”. It was organized under the aegis of Department of Defence Production, Ministry of Defence through FICCI.
This webinar is the part of the series of webinars which are being organized with friendly foreign countries in order to boost defence exports and achieve defence export target of $5 billion in the next five years.
Ambassadors of both countries and senior MoD officials from both sides participated in the webinar and spoke about need to leverage opportunities not only for co-development and co-production but also to meet each other’s requirements.
Various Indian companies such as L&T Defence, Ashok Leyland Limited, Bharat Forge, Zen Technologies, Elcom Innovations, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, Alpha Design Technologies and Bharat Electronics Limited. made company and product presentations on major platforms/equipment like Artillery Systems, Radars, Protected Vehicles, Missiles and Air Defence Equipments, Training Solutions etc in the webinar. BEL announced its plans to open representative office in Kazakhstan.
The webinar was attended by more than 350 participants and 39 virtual exhibition stalls, which includes 7 stalls from Kazakh companies have been set up in the Expo.
Ministry of Commerce & Industry
National Conclave on Food Safety by Spices Board
With the objective of promoting food safety and capacity building, Spices Board organized a National Conclave on Food Safety in New Delhi yesterday. The programme was inaugurated by Dr. B.N.S. Murthy. Secretary, Spices Board, Dr. M.K. Shanmuga Sundaram, representing country head USFDA, Dr. Christopher Priddywere present on the occasion.
Dr.Shanmuga Sundaram, in his address emphasized the need for safe food for a healthy, growing generation and our obligations to fulfil national and international standards. He said that it is the responsibility of all stakeholders to ensure food safety from farm to fork. Dr. Murthy, in his inaugural address pointed out the concerns to be addressed at the farm level and the need for post-harvest hygiene and the prevention of unintentional contaminations for safe food. An overview of the Food Safety Modernization Act was presented by Dr. Christopher Priddy.
Food safety requirements under FSSAI regulations were elaborated and presented by Sunil Bakshi, Advisor FSSAI. Food safety hazards in the spice industry was a topic of presentation byDr. James Rushing, JIFSAN, USFDA. The impact assessment of food safety training programmes were presented by Dr. Clare Narrod, JIFSAN, USFDA.
A panel discussion on the future path to implementation of food safety measures was also held at the end of the programme.
Ministry of New and Renewable Energy
Solar Energy Corporation of India gets 'Miniratna Category-I' status
SECI enjoys highest credit rating of AAA by ICRA
SECI committed to achieving the target of 500 GW of non-fossil fuel based capacity by 2030: Ms. Suman Sharma, MD, SECI
Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited  has been accorded the status of Miniratna Category-I Central Public Sector Enterprise  on Monday, 10th April, 2023. A communication to this effect has been issued by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Govt. of India.
Incorporated in the year 2011, SECI is the primary implementing agency of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Govt. of India for Renewable Energy schemes/projects towards fulfillment of India's international commitments. Till date, SECI has awarded Renewable Energy  project capacities of over 56 GW. SECI is also active in setting up of projects through its own investments as well as for other public sector entities as Project Management Consultant . SECI enjoys highest credit rating of AAA by ICRA.
Speaking on the achievment, Ms. Suman Sharma, Managing Director, SECI said that SECI has achieved this feat in a short period of time owning to its consistent performance, speed and flexibility in operations. "SECI has played a Central role in the rapid increase of RE generation capacity in the country and has contributed towards the nation's climate commitments, carbon emission reduction strategies and sustainable energy transition.” She has further reaffirmed SECI’s commitment towards achieving the Honourable Prime Minister’s ‘Panchamrita’ targets and to be an integral part in achieving the 500 GW of non-fossil fuel based capacity by 2030.
Ministry of Home Affairs
High Level Committee under the Chairmanship of Union Home Minister, Shri Amit Shah has approved Rs 3,063.21 crore of additional Central assistance to six States
Assam, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand and West Bengal to get funds for floods/landslides/cyclones that occurred during 2021
The High Level Committee , under the Chairmanship of the Union Home Minister, Shri Amit Shah, has approved additional Central assistance under the National Disaster Response Fund , to six States, which were affectedby floods, landslides and cyclones during 2021. This shows the resolve of the Union Government under the leadership of Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi to help the people of the six states who faced these natural disasters.
The HLC approved additional Central assistance of Rs. 3,063.21 crore from the NDRF:
- For Cyclone ‘Tauktae’- 2021, Rs.1,133.35 crore to Gujarat;
- For Cyclone ‘Yaas’- 2021, Rs.586.59 crore to West Bengal;
- For floods/landslides during the South West Monsoon, 2021, Rs. 51.53 crore to Assam, Rs. 504.06 Crore to Karnataka, Rs. 600.50 crore to Madhya Pradesh and Rs. 187.18 crore to Uttarakhand.
This additional assistance is over and above the funds released by the Centre to the States in the State Disaster Response Fund , already placed at the disposal of the States. During the financial year 2021-22, the Central Government has released Rs. 17,747.20 crore to 28 States in their SDRF. Further Rs. 3,543.54 Crore has been released to 7 States from NDRF.
In the aftermath of Cyclone ‘Taukte’ and ‘Yaas’, Rs. 1,000 crore was released in advance from NDRF to Gujarat on 20.05.2021and Rs. 300 crore to West Bengal on 29.05.2021.
During the year 2021-22, the Central Government had deputed 22 Inter-Ministerial Central Teams  immediately after natural calamities, without waiting for the receipt of a Memorandum from the affected State Governments.
Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions
Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh says, the 10 Step CPGRAMS reforms process has resulted in significant reduction in pendency and in the average time of disposal of Public Grievances. This is the first time since inception of CPGRAMS that PG case redressal has crossed 1 lac cases/ month.
Union Minister of State, PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Minister of State  Science & Technology, M/o Earth Sciences; MoS, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh said that the 10 Step CPGRAMS reforms process has resulted in significant reduction in pendency and in the average time of disposal of Public Grievances. In 2022, Ministries/ Departments have disposed 1.14 lac Public Grievances  cases in August, 1.17 lac Public Grievances  cases in September, 1.19 lac Public Grievances  cases in October, 1.08 lac Public Grievances  cases in November, 1.27 lac Public Grievances  cases in December, 2022 and 1.25 lac Public Grievances  cases in January, 2023. This is the first time since inception of CPGRAMS that PG case redressal has crossed 1 lac cases/ month.
In a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today, Dr. Jitendra Singh said Government has taken several initiatives to improve quality of grievance redressal and reduce timelines of disposal. In 2022, Government implemented the 10-step reforms of CPGRAMS, the Centralised Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System. The reforms included Universalization of CPGRAMS 7.0, Technological Enhancements using AI/ML, Language Translation of CPGRAMS portal into 22 Scheduled languages, operationalization of Grievance Redressal Index, operationalization of a Feedback Call Centre, One Nation One Portal by integration of State Portal/Other Grievance Portals of Government of India with CPGRAMS, inclusivity and outreach with availability of CPGRAMS in all Common Service Centres, Training and Capacity Building of Grievance Redressal Officers under Sevottam scheme, publishing monthly reports for Central Ministries/Departments and States/UT’s and establishment of a Data Strategy Unit for data analytics.
The Minister further added that the average disposal time of Central Ministries/Departments has decreased from 32 days in 2021 to 27 days in 2022 to 19 days in January 2023. The 2022 Feedback Call Centre report indicated 2,51,495 successful calls, of which 57,486 had excellent and very good feedback and 73,817 calls where citizens expressed satisfaction. In case of poor rating the option of appeal to higher officer is provided to the citizen. Nodal and Sub-Nodal Appellate Authorities have been operationalised in all Ministries/Departments.
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
COVID-19 Vaccination Update- Day 182
India’s COVID-19 Vaccination Coverage reaches nearly 40 Cr
More than 38.79 lakh Vaccine Doses administered today till 7 pm
More than 12.62 Cr Vaccine doses administered in the age group 18-44, so far
India’s cumulative COVID Vaccination Coverage reached nearly 40 crore , as per the 7 pm provisional report today. The new phase of universalization of COVID-19 vaccination commenced from 21st June. More than 38.79 lakh  Vaccine Doses have been administered today, as per the 7 pm provisional report.
16,35,591 vaccine doses were administered as first dose and 2,11,553 vaccine doses given as second dose in the age group 18-44 years today. Cumulatively, 12,16,46,175 persons in the age group 18-44 years across 37 States/UTs have received their first dose and total 45,98,664 have received their second dose since the start of Phase-3 of the vaccination drive. Eight States namely Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Gujarat, Karnataka and Maharashtra have administered more than 50 lakh first dose of COVID-19 Vaccine in the age group 18-44 years. Also, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Haryana, Jharkhand, Kerala, Telangana, Himachal Pradesh, Odisha, Punjab, Uttarakhand and West Bengal have vaccinated more than 10 lakh beneficiaries of the age group 18-44 years for the first dose of COVID vaccine.
The table below shows the cumulative vaccine doses administered to 18-44 years age group till now.
|
|
S.No.
|
|
State
|
|
1st Dose
|
|
2nd Dose
|
|
1
|
|
A & N Islands
|
|
69638
|
|
77
|
|
2
|
|
Andhra Pradesh
|
|
2656676
|
|
57670
|
|
3
|
|
Arunachal Pradesh
|
|
321477
|
|
395
|
|
4
|
|
Assam
|
|
3311856
|
|
153301
|
|
5
|
|
Bihar
|
|
7642072
|
|
165824
|
|
6
|
|
Chandigarh
|
|
254621
|
|
1270
|
|
7
|
|
Chhattisgarh
|
|
3122908
|
|
87078
|
|
8
|
|
Dadra & Nagar Haveli
|
|
215356
|
|
163
|
|
9
|
|
Daman & Diu
|
|
159478
|
|
707
|
|
10
|
|
Delhi
|
|
3414884
|
|
210646
|
|
11
|
|
Goa
|
|
453237
|
|
10608
|
|
12
|
|
Gujarat
|
|
8929483
|
|
286700
|
|
13
|
|
Haryana
|
|
3874245
|
|
187665
|
|
14
|
|
Himachal Pradesh
|
|
1198389
|
|
2531
|
|
15
|
|
Jammu & Kashmir
|
|
1216593
|
|
45949
|
|
16
|
|
Jharkhand
|
|
2876407
|
|
111371
|
|
17
|
|
Karnataka
|
|
8574981
|
|
262084
|
|
18
|
|
Kerala
|
|
2463090
|
|
189530
|
|
19
|
|
Ladakh
|
|
86766
|
|
9
|
|
20
|
|
Lakshadweep
|
|
24002
|
|
82
|
|
21
|
|
Madhya Pradesh
|
|
10892805
|
|
481524
|
|
22
|
|
Maharashtra
|
|
9315433
|
|
397518
|
|
23
|
|
Manipur
|
|
408546
|
|
849
|
|
24
|
|
Meghalaya
|
|
363752
|
|
284
|
|
25
|
|
Mizoram
|
|
332815
|
|
715
|
|
26
|
|
Nagaland
|
|
296469
|
|
444
|
|
27
|
|
Odisha
|
|
3912222
|
|
223055
|
|
28
|
|
Puducherry
|
|
226564
|
|
1476
|
|
29
|
|
Punjab
|
|
2170616
|
|
62429
|
|
30
|
|
Rajasthan
|
|
8600136
|
|
188736
|
|
31
|
|
Sikkim
|
|
277561
|
|
138
|
|
32
|
|
Tamil Nadu
|
|
6961751
|
|
302104
|
|
33
|
|
Telangana
|
|
4919738
|
|
307375
|
|
34
|
|
Tripura
|
|
968555
|
|
15007
|
|
35
|
|
Uttar Pradesh
|
|
14148447
|
|
474161
|
|
36
|
|
Uttarakhand
|
|
1702155
|
|
42088
|
|
37
|
|
West Bengal
|
|
5282451
|
|
327101
|
|
|
|
Total
|
|
121646175
|
|
4598664